


Fire and Ice

by Clairebear1982



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Muggle, Drama, F/M, Friendship, Loss of Trust
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-16 02:49:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29943363
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Clairebear1982/pseuds/Clairebear1982
Summary: Dramione. Muggle AU. Hermione is determined to win the Oxford University entry prize in a bid to get away from her former best friend Draco Malfoy. Will she succeed?
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Kudos: 10
Collections: Stories Written For The IWSC (International Wizarding School Competition)





	Fire and Ice

School: Ilvermorny  
Year: 7  
Theme: Infighting

Write about a positive friendship turning sour.

Prompts:   
[First/last line] The madness in her/his/their eyes was an inspiration.   
[Object] An ill-fitting bra  
[Word] Worse

W/C: 2453  
\-----  
The madness in her eyes was an inspiration. 

"I've just had a brilliant idea," Hermione said as she ran a hand through her curly hair. 

"What's that?" Draco said as he looked up from his English homework. He noted the look in her eyes. He'd seen that look before. "What are you planning?" 

"I'm going to enter the school competition for the Oxford University entry," Hermione said. 

Draco threw his pen down and scoffed. "What makes you think you can win that, Hermione? They only give that prize to someone from a prestigious family."

Hermione looked incredulously at her best friend. She knew he could be a bit of a stuck up snob when he wanted to be. He didn’t direct it towards her, usually. 

"Just because I’m not from a high-society family, it doesn't mean that I don't have a chance, you complete arse!" Hermione said, slamming her books shut. "I may not have the kind of money your family has, but we aren't hard up. It would be nice to prove myself — particularly to people like you!"

"You are so desperate to prove yourself, for fucks sake! You've already surpassed our entire year — myself included. This is why no one likes you.” 

“Thanks, Draco.” Hermione snatched up her bag, and all her excitement slipped away as she walked out of the room. 

Behind her bushy brown hair, she swiped away an angry tear. The fight — like so many others before it — left Hermione shaking and upset. 

She felt like a narcissist by holding on to their friendship, which had steadily gotten worse and worse. She just wasn't strong enough to walk away from him. 

*****

Draco and Hermione had met on a tour of the school before their first year. To distract herself from her nerves, Hermione’s eyes darted around to take in the dark wood panelling and stone decor that decorated the entire school.

They were young, eager, with no idea how different they were, and were anxious to attend that coming September. 

"I'm Draco, Draco Malfoy," he had said as he held out a hand. 

Hermione had stiffened and stared wide-eyed at the blond boy in front of her. No one ever spoke to her. She was the curly-haired oddball with teeth that were too big for her mouth. Now, this cute, smart boy was eyeing her with a smirk. 

"I'm Hermione Granger," she had replied nervously. 

She had expected him to snort in derision, but instead, he had smiled. 

After that, they walked around the school, chatting non-stop. She could feel his father's eyes boring into the back of her skull. 

“Dad, why is Draco’s father staring at me like that?” Hermione asked quietly.

Mr Granger’s lip curled for a moment before smoothing out and replying to his young daughter. “Because Mr Malfoy is an upper-class snob who sees people like us as charity cases, darling.”

“Oh,” was all Hermione could think to say. 

During a break, Draco was dragged away. Hermione’s eyes searched for him, finally spotting him standing with his father, who was whispering fervently in his ear. She had already felt nervous, but Draco’s father’s actions only made her feel worse. The churning in her stomach grew, and she was almost definitely going to be sick.   
Draco winked at her. When his father was done, he sauntered back towards her. 

"Is everything alright?" Hermione asked. She glanced over at Draco's father. 

"Totally fine! He said I should only associate with the other children coming here, but they're boring," Draco said. 

When the tour came to an end, Draco handed Hermione a piece of paper with his phone number and address. 

"Write to me, and if we can arrange it, maybe you can come over for tea?" Draco asked.

"I — I would love that." 

*****

When Hermione had visited Malfoy Manor, she'd stood at the bottom of the steps leading to the front door in awe of its grandeur. Draco had pulled the door open and beckoned her towards him.

Hermione ran lightly up the steps and inside the manor. As she entered, her jaw dropped. 

"You could fit my entire house in your — what do you call a humongous porch?" Hermione said as she spun around, eye-hungry, taking in every single detail down to the moulding. 

"You haven't seen anything yet. Follow me."

Draco took Hermione on a tour of the manor, starting with the north wing and their exquisite — and rather huge — library. 

Hermione had stopped in her tracks and gawped. “I’ve never seen so many books in my entire life, and I’ve been to that enormous Waterstones in Central London.” 

She had reached out a hand, but Draco was already dragging her deeper into the library.   
He had pulled her all the way in until they were standing beneath an enormous domed ceiling that looked on par with the Sistine Chapel. Sliding ladders ran along the bookcases, which were stacked from floor to ceiling. 

Behind them was a large picture window that showed the sprawling smooth lawn. 

"Draco, this is breathtaking," Hermione gasped.

"It's alright," Draco shrugged. "Come on, let me show you the rest of the house." 

Draco had continued to show her the rest of the house. It occurred to her that her family would never afford anything like this. Her family wasn't poor, but Draco lived in a whole other world. 

Hermione bit her lip. "Draco, can I... please go home?" Hermione asked in a small voice. 

"What's the matter?" Draco asked in confusion.

"I... I can't really explain it. All this... stuff — I could never be a friend to you. I live in a really small house. All I could show you would be my bedroom and the garden."

"Do you think I care about that?" Draco asked. "I hate all this crap. The only reason anyone wants to hang out with me is to get stuff. You, you're different; I could tell that from the start…"

"Draco!" Lucius' voice cracked like a whip causing both Draco and Hermione to spin around. "A word. Now."

Draco gulped, and Hermione felt a surge of sympathy for him. 

"What is she doing here? I told you that I didn't want her in this house; you don't associate with those beneath you. You already have perfectly acceptable friends," Lucius said. 

Hermione eyed Lucius as he spoke to his son. Lucius was watching her in a way she couldn’t truly understand. Hermione’s heart broke, and tears filled her eyes. She wanted nothing more than to go home. 

"Father, please. Hermione is my friend—" 

"—Over my dead body." 

Hermione fled the manor, and she never went back again. Not after the way Lucius had made her feel like she was a fly that needed to be squashed.

\----------

Over the years, the other students continued to ask her why she was friends with Draco Malfoy. Most of the time, she wouldn't answer. 

Secretly, she wasn't entirely sure why she was friends with him. She knew how possessive he'd become over the years — especially of her. If she even mentioned that she was going out with one of her other friends, Draco would get jealous. 

His temper did have the effect of scaring her on occasion. He would pick things up and throw them — never at her, but it was still enough to unnerve her. Sometimes the way his grey eyes glinted like ice when he looked at her as if she was his possession. Then he would say how his family had prestige and how they were better than everyone else.

\---------

Before their graduation, Hermione mentioned that she would need to go dress shopping, and of course, Draco insisted on helping her choose a dress.

On the way into the city, she realised she was wearing an older bra that was a bit too small. She felt like she was about to spill out of her cups any moment. Hermione surreptitiously tried to adjust herself so she would hopefully feel a bit more comfortable. The sensation soon evaporated, and she was soon surreptitiously adjusting herself yet again. 

The shop she chose was a slightly more expensive one. It had a boutique feel to it. It was simply decorated in cream and powder blue.

She stood in the changing room, trying to get a dress done up, but it wouldn’t go over her bra. The damn thing just didn’t fit right, not to mention it was visible above the line of her dress. 

"Do you need any help?" Draco called from the other side of the door. 

"No. No, thank you. It's fine. I can handle it myself," Hermione called back, her voice an octave higher than usual. 

"Are you alright?" Draco asked, pushing the door open. 

Hermione squealed and shoved Draco away, slamming the door before he saw everything. 

"I said I was fine!" Hermione pulled on her t-shirt at record speed, before storming out and towards Draco. 

"How dare you! How dare you barge in like that. What gives you the right; you think you own the bloody world, you complete arse!" 

Hermione grabbed her coat and bag. The bell on the shop door jingling as she disappeared into the busy city. 

Draco stood astonished for a moment before running after her. 

"Granger, wait!" Draco yelled as he ran after her. 

"Go away, Malfoy or I'll find a police officer and tell them that you're harassing me," Hermione called over her shoulder. 

"Wait, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to barge in. You sounded funny, but I thought you were stuck in a zip," Draco shot back. 

Hermione stopped dead and spun on her heel. "If I were stuck, I would have said that I needed help. I didn't. All that matters is that Draco knows best! Just leave me alone. I don't want to see you right now." She glared before leaving him standing on the street alone. 

As soon as Hermione arrived home, she took the bra off and started to twist it until the underwires gave way and satisfyingly snapped. She then grabbed her scissors and started hacking the bra to pieces before throwing it in the bin by her desk. She never wanted to look at it again. Lest it would be a reminder of a day she’d rather forget. 

Worse was to come. When she returned to school after the weekend, Draco was waiting. 

"How dare you run away from me," said Draco sneered as he lightly grabbed Hermione's arm. 

He pulled her out of the flow of students and around the side of the building. 

"Get your hands off of me," Hermione said as she pulled her arm free, glaring at him. "How dare you lay a hand on me, you bastard. Next time I will report you to Mrs McGonagall. We’re no longer friends, and if you ever come near me again, I'll…" 

Hermione choked back a sob.

“You don’t own me, Draco. Even you aren’t that rich.” She rushed away, hiding her tears, yet again, behind her curtain of brown locks. 

Her resolve to win the Oxford University prize was now strengthened because she wanted to get the hell away from here — and in her mind — her former best friend. 

She couldn't stand his classism, his possessiveness, and his elitist views. She needed to break away from him. Maybe one day, if he grew up, just maybe, they could be friends again. 

******

As Hermione headed into the school for one final time, she stopped to look around at the decorations that bedecked the hall. 

There was a huge banner above the stage that said: ‘Congratulations Class of 1998.’ The stage had a carpet running from the bottom of the steps on the left, across the front and down the steps on the right side. Chairs for the teachers sat at the back of the stage. 

The Headmaster’s podium had been polished until it gleamed. Hermione drank it all in. 

Chairs were put out for graduates and parents. Students sat on one side of the hall and the parents on the other. The year that Hermione was in had two rows right in front of the stage. She felt hot inside her graduation robes, and her head was sweating profusely under her graduation cap. She found her seat that had her name on it and sat down, waiting for the ceremony to begin. 

Once all the speeches and the inter-house prizes had been given, it was time to announce the winner of the Oxford University prize. 

Hermione sat nervously on the edge of her seat as Headmaster Dumbledore cleared his throat and began to speak. 

“The Oxford University prize pays for the tuition of the most exemplary student at The Meadway Academy. This is a coveted prize that some of our best have won and gone on to achieve great things in the fields of Science, Mathematics, English and Politics. This year's winner is no exception. The student who has won this award this year is a true scholar and inspiration to all their fellow students.” 

Hermione began to shake with nerves and excitement. Tears filled her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. 

“The winner of this year's prize is… Hermione Granger.” 

Hermione immediately sprung to her feet. On nervous legs, she walked towards the stage. Everything moved in slow motion, and her head felt like it was underwater. As she approached her Headmaster, he put out both of his hands and clasped her shoulders, pulling her in until he was close enough to shake her hand. He handed her the envelope and moved to one side of the podium so Hermione could stand in front of it.

"My Lords, Ladies and Gentlemen, it is a great honour to be stood here accepting this award. If you had told me at the beginning of this year that I would be standing here receiving this prize, I would have said you’d gone mad.”

Hermione’s words made the hall rumble with low laughter. 

“I am so honoured to have won this award. Like everyone who put their names forward for a chance to win this prestigious award, I have worked as hard as I possibly could to fulfil the criteria. Today that hard work has paid off. Thank you.”

Hermione looked at her classmates as they cheered. The only person who wasn't was Draco. Hermione's heart ached for him. They'd been best friends for seven years, and now he couldn't even look at her. She would always miss him, but she couldn't let him hold her back. She wanted her life to be a life worth living. The madness in her eyes had truly been an inspiration.


End file.
